Voice

May-June 2013

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In May 1998, I set up an "online diary" on my website to keep readers apprised of legislative developments surrounding the H-1B nonimmigrant visa debate. I wasn't familiar with the term "blog" because
it wasn't coined until six months later, but the page
was the first legal blog on the Internet and I happily
claim to be the first lawyer blogger. The H-1B legislation diary was extremely popular and, in one day
alone, received more than 50,000 hits as people were
scouring the web looking for any information on that
subject. If you're interested in seeing that page, go to
the Wayback Machine and see our site as it looked in
December 1998.
My firm, Siskind Susser, P.C., now has several blogs
that cover a variety of subjects. I write for Greg Siskind
on Immigration Law and Policy. I also write blogs on
several narrow immigration subjects, such as health
care immigration, EB-5 visas, I-9s, and E-Verify.
Today, there are dozens of immigration law blogs. A
few of my favorites include:
• Angelo Paparelli on Dysfunctional Government
• AILA Leadership Blog
• ImmigrationProf Blog
• America's Voice Blog
• Joel Stewart's Labor Certification Blog
• Bender's Immigration Bulletin
• Reid F. Trautz, Director of AILA's Practice and
Professionalism Center, has an excellent blog
called "Reid My Blog."
Why Blog?
If you're considering blogging, there are several
good reasons to invest the time and effort. Among the
advantages:
• It is an extremely effective way to market a niche
practice;
• Blogs are an easy way to promote firm
developments;
For more social media tips, see the
Technology page from AILA's Practice
and Professionalism Center.
• Blog tools are typically located on third-party
websites and new software is usually not required;
• Content for a blog can be generated quickly, so
if you don't have the time to write long articles, a
blog can be a nice alternative;
• Search engines love blogs, and posts on a blog are
frequently picked up by search engines within
hours;
• Blogs are great for recycling content, such as
articles, PowerPoint presentations, video and
audio files, etc.;
• Blogs are a nice way to interact with clients and
potential clients since you can allow comments to
your posts; and
• It is easy to collaborate with others so that
multiple people can contribute content to the
blog rather than everything going through one
person.
Why Not Blog?
While I typically evangelize on the benefits of blogging, other marketing tools might fare better. Here are
some of the minuses:
• A blog can easily become stale without regular
attention. There is no accepted frequency for
posting, but at least a couple of posts per month
should be the goal;
• A blog is not a substitute for other marketing
endeavors, such as writing books and articles;
• It can be tough to monitor your firm's content
on a blog since it is so easy and quick to post. Be
sure you and your colleagues know how to use
the software properly;
• The informal nature of a blog might not
complement your firm's image fit; and
M AY/ J UNE 2013
ILLUSTRATION BY BRADLEY AMBURN
Lawyer Blogs
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